Netherland-based organic fruit and vegetable specialist Eosta has announced the launch of the ‘Faces of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)’ campaign; an initiative aimed at raising awareness of UN SDGs across the fresh produce sector.
‘Faces of the SDGs’ aims to highlight passionate individuals from the produce sector with their own personal Sustainable Development Goal, as part of the company’s efforts to encourage greater uptake of the SDG challenge throughout the supply chain. During the Fruit Logistica and Biofach trade fairs in February, Eosta shot the first of a series of portraits of produce professionals with specially-designed SDG cubes; each giving participants the option to choose their preferred goal from a total of 17.
In 2015, the Sustainable Development Goals framework was adopted by all member countries of the UN, with the aim of ending poverty, protecting the planet and ensuring prosperity for all by 2030. Although former Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged govern- ments to “take the lead with decisive steps,” at the same time he called on businesses to “provide essential solutions and resources that put our world on a more sustainable path”.
Michaël Wilde, Sustainability & Communications manager at Eosta, said: “We want to take the SDGs out of the theoretical policy space and move them firmly into the commercial environment where economy meets ecology. We hope to create more awareness for these goals both within and outside the produce sector.
“Giving people the possibility to choose their most important goal out of the 17 takes them out of their role as a buyer, farmer or trader. It creates room for a different kind of conversation about the future of our planet and everyone’s personal role in working towards a cleaner and fairer world,” Wilde explained.
Eosta is one of the first companies in the fresh food industry to have actively incorporated SDGs into its current business model. The UN goals have been thoroughly studied and connected to the indicators of the company’s ‘Sustainability Flower,’ an assessment and transparency model developed and used by the company.
The UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals form part of the organisation’s sustainable development agenda, with each goal comprising targets to be achieved over a 15-year period. Goal 12 – Ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns – is of particular relevance to the global fresh produce sector. However, Eosta estimates that close to 10 further Sustainable Development Goals would be impacted positively if the sector began farm more responsibly.
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